The 76ers will start a two-game road trip Saturday against the Mavericks after picking up two home wins over teams currently in playoff positions – one of which cost them Joel Embiid, who will be sidelined for the immediate future.
Tip-off is set for 8:30 p.m. ET. The Mavericks open as 2-point favorites, while the over/under is set at 223 points.
It is the second-leg of a back-to-back for the Mavericks after they lost to the Lakers 129-114 Friday night. Saturday’s game will be the third in four days for Dallas – they also lost to the Nuggets 107-106 Wednesday night. The 76ers are much more rested after having two days off since their 109-98 win over the Celtics on Thursday night.
The matchup features two of the league’s most prolific young stars – Ben Simmons and Luka Doncic. Both nearly average triple-doubles on the season, but do so in extremely different ways. Doncic is lethal behind the arc, taking more than nine 3-pointers a game. Simmons has made just two treys in his career, preferring to score in transition.
Embiid’s absence allowed the 76ers to experiment with different looks in the win over the Celtics. Simmons spent more time in the paint, often acting as a screener and roller and scoring in the post rather than serving as the primary ball-handler. Al Horford was allowed to shift from his normal role as a spot-up shooter and be more of a creator, and Josh Richardson was more assertive in his offensive game. Coach Brett Brown will likely use a few of those looks again against the Mavericks.
Although he has been rusty in his first season back from injury, the Mavericks certainly miss Kristaps Porzingis’ production. Dallas is 2-4 since Porzingis was sidelined – its worst stretch of the season. Doncic has been forced to carry an even greater offensive load. He has struggled a bit of late, ripping his jersey in frustration in Friday’s loss to the Lakers.
While the Mavericks haven’t exactly made the American Airlines Center a major advantage this season with just a 11-10 home record, the 76ers have struggled on the road, with just a 7-12 record away from Wells Fargo Center.
The Mavericks are 7-13-1 against the spread at home this season, while the 76ers enter the matchup with an 8-11 record against the spread on the road this season. The Mavericks are the third-highest scoring team in the league, averaging 116.3 points per game. The 76ers score 109.8 points a game this season, but are now without Embiid, their leading scorer.
In their only other meeting this season, the Mavericks won 117-98. Dallas was without Doncic in that matchup.
Prediction: 76ers (+2), Over 223.
